The spoils system served as the glue that helped make the parties so powerful Officials could and did use federal contracts to convince people to vote for their candidates The feeling that the spoils system corrupted government or at least made it terribly inefficient prompted a number of prominent figures to promote civil service reform in a reformed system most government workers would get their jobs due to their expertise and maintain them regardless of which party won the election signed the Pendleton Civil Service Act in 1883; this act established that anyone who wanted a government job had to take an exam and getting the job depended on doing well on the exam not on manipulating one’s political connections The tax on imports of manufactured …show more content…
Farmers discovered that other enormous obstacles stood in the way of realizing their dreams, they received low prices for their crops yet they had to pay high costs for transportation Cotton which sold for about 15 cents a pound in the early 1870s, sold for only about 6 cents a pound in the mid 1890s, corn and wheat prices declined just as rapidly By the early 1890s it was costing farmers more to produce corn than they could get by selling it, so they burned it and used it as fuel Planting more crops didn’t help either, the more crops that farmers produced the more prices declined During the same time period the cost of doing business rose; to pay for new machinery, seed, livestock, and other needs farmers went into debt An increasing number of farmers mortgaged their farms to raise funds to survive and became tenant farmers, meaning that they no longer owned the farm where they worked Farmers blamed big business, especially the railroads and the banks, they protested that railroads charged whatever rates they wanted Farmers felt that they performed honest labor and produced necessary goods while bankers and businessmen were the ones who got …show more content…
Many farmers on both sides recognized that they all faced the same problems but racial tension prevented any effective cooperation between the groups In 1892 the people formed the Populist Party or the People’s Party The Populist Party spelled out their views, the platform warned about the dangers of political corruption, an inadequate monetary supply, and an unresponsive government In the South the Populist Party had to unite blacks and whites if it hoped to succeed politically, they made a strong case for casting aside racial prejudice in favor of a political alliance between the races; however, the Democratic Party successfully used racist tactics, such as warning that a Populist victory would lead to a “‘Negro supremacy” to diminish the appeal of the Populist Party The Populist Party nominated William Jennings Bryan in 1896, many supported him saying that he spoke for “the plain people of this country” for “our farms” After Bryan’s famous speech that he gave won over some the Democratic delegates they nominated him as the Democratic presidential candidate Bryan was the first presidential candidate ever to actually tour the United States and speak directly to the
From 1865 to 1900, production of crops increased, and prices dropped. (Document A) These crops were shipped east, where they were eaten and exported to other countries. This was due to technology, but government policy caused economic conditions in the west barely improved as a result. In fact, despite the success many farmers experienced, many in the west still struggled to put food on the table.
From the expanding of railroads country wide, to limiting laws on the goods farmers sold and transportation of the goods,to starvation of the economy, agriculture began to take its own shape from 1865 through to 1900 in the United States.
... as farmers became more conscious of prices rising to transport their goods, they were forced to find other means of transportation to distribute their goods.
Farmers’ incomes were low, and in order to make a profit on what they produced, they begun to expand the regions in which they sold their products in. This was facilitated through the railroads, by which through a series of grants from the government as...
The farmers of the late 1800s had many reasons for being dissatisfied with their situation. Unfair railroad practices, such as rebates and drawbacks, hurt them severely. Even common issues of shortage of money, drought, and mortgages were all issues that hurt farmers economically. The farmers of the period, though, used these issues to change the shape of American politics.
The Roaring Twenties approached and the citizens in Colorado were facing rough times. In 1920, many people such as farm owners, manufacturers, and even miners were having a hard time making a living due to an economic downfall. The farmers especially, where facing the toughest of times. The price of various farm-grown goods like wheat, sugar beets, and even cattle was dropping because their goods were no longer needed by the public. Wheat had dropped in price from $2.02 in 1918 to $0.76 by the time 1921 came around. Sadly, the land that they were using to grow wheat became dry and many farmers had to learn to grow through “dryland farming” which became very popular in the eastern plains from 1910 to 1930 (Hard Times: 1920 - 1940). Apple trees began to die due to the lack of desire for apples, poor land, and decreased prices. Over the course of World War I, the prices of farm goods began to increase slowly. Farmers were not the only one facing this economic hardship while others in big cities were enjoying the Roaring Twenties.
• The high dollar reduced US Exports, therefore hurting both American farming and American Farming manufacturer producers.
Farmer’s had difficulties making a living because the rates of being a farmer was high. “Nothing has done more to injure the western region than these freight rates.” (Quoted from Document F) The high rates of being a farmer made it very difficult to make payments on the lands. Some farmers couldn’t even sell their produce for a reasonable profit. They worked long, hard hours and the government wasn’t on their side about paying them a decent income. Along with farm prices failing, railroad prices were increasing. Railroads were important very to farmers because they took farmers out to their lands, carried their produce to markets, and brought them the manufactured goods that they needed. Many farm settlements were made around railroads just because of this reason. Railroad managers were forced to charge very high rates and because of it, farmers would have to pay more money to use railroads.
At the same time, the local agricultural economy was experiencing a deep economic depression due to the severe droughs that had occured throughout the past decade. The loss of crops cut out the average farmers'/planters' main food source as well a...
The increase in crop yield caused a change in the economy, which the party set out to straighten out in 1892. On their party platform they demanded that the government take control of the railroad. The railroad was charging extremely high prices to transport grain. They asked the government to use the railroads for the benefit of the people. They also wished to set the economy straight and asked for an unlimited coinage of gold and silver at a ratio of sixteen to one and a graduat...
The wheat supply forced the price down from sixty-eight cents/bushel in July 1930 to twenty-five cents/bushel in July 1931. Many farmers went broke and others abandoned their fields, but most decided to stay despite the unfavorable conditions.
Crops such as cotton and wheat, once the sustenance of the agriculture industry, were selling at prices so low that it was nearly impossible for farmers to make a profit off them. Furthermore, improvements in transportation allowed foreign competition to materialize, making it harder for American farmers to dispose of surplus crops. Mother Nature was also showing no mercy with grasshoppers, floods, and major droughts that led to a downward spiral of business that devastated many of the nation’s farmers. As a result of the agricultural depression, numerous farms groups, most notably the Populist Party, arose to fight what the farmers saw as the reasons for the decline in agriculture. During the final twenty years of the nineteenth century, many farmers in the United States saw monopolies and trusts, railroads, and money shortages and the loss in value of silver as threats to their way of life, all of which could be recognized as valid complaints.
Most of the reasons concerning agrarian discontent in the late nineteenth century stem from supposed threats posed by monopolies and trusts, railroads, money shortages and the demonetization of silver, though in many cases their complaints were not valid. The American farmer at this time already had his fair share of problems, perhaps even perceived as unfair in regards to the success industrialized businessmen were experiencing. Nevertheless, crops such as cotton and wheat, which were once the staples of an agricultural society, were selling at such low prices that it was nearly impossible for farmers to make a profit off them, especially since some had invested a great deal of money in modern equipment that would allow them to produce twice as many goods. Furthermore, improvements in transportation allowed foreign competition to emerge, making it harder for American Farmers to not only dispose of surplus crop, but to transport crops period. Finally, years of drought in the Midwest and the degeneration of business in the 1890's devastated many of the nation's farmers, and as a result of this agricultural depression' many farm groups, most notably the Populist Party, arose to fight what farmers saw as the reasons for the decline of agriculture.
Agriculture has changed dramatically, especially since the end of World War II. Food and fibre productivity rose due to new technologies, mechanization, increased chemical use, specialization and government policies that favoured maximizing production. These changes allowed fewer farmers with reduced labour demands to produce the majority of the food and fibre.